London's 1000 most influential people 2011: Property

Monday 7 November 2011 15:43 BST

Michael GutmanWestfield, UK & EUROPE managing directorIt has taken an Aussie - in the shape of this tall, bronzed head of the shopping mall giant - to show British property people how to do retail. The 2008 debut of Westfield in Shepherd's Bush and this year's Stratford City launch have been triumphs which confounded the sceptics as well as the economic climate. Gutman is a trained architect who decided he was more interested in the commercial side of buildings.

Sir Terry FarrellArchitect Want a master-plan? There is only one choice: the man who has written the book titled Shaping London. Sir Terry is doing most of the shaping, including 70 acres of Earl's Court. Previous hits include MI6's HQ in Vauxhall and the revamp of Charing Cross Station.

Nick LeslauMax Properties, founderThe savvy, street-wise new owner of St Katharine Docks still looks youthful but is something of a veteran of the property scene. Appearing on TV's Secret Millionaire gave Leslau a media profile but he got some stick for daring to speak out as a landlord of debt-laden care homes group Southern Cross.

Francis SalwayLand Securities, CEOUnderstated gent who has bet on the Walkie Talkie City tower, plus half a dozen other huge London schemes including Cardinal Place and One New Change. His agenda-setting strategy has prompted others, more hesitant, to develop across the capital. He's also a director of retailer Next.

Chris GriggBritish Land, CEOTall, dark and polished ex-Goldman Sachs and Barclays banker is now the boss of the UK's second-biggest developer, and is looking for a return of more than a few shavings from his big, new Cheesegrater tower in the City. He also oversees Broadgate in the City and Regent's Place in Marylebone.

George IacobescuCanary Wharf Group, CEOThe driving force behind Canary Wharf, this resolute Romanian is hoping for the Olympics feelgood factor to rub off on his estate. Iacobescu is also spreading Canary's wings to the Shell Centre redevelopment on the South Bank.

Tony PidgleyBerkeley Group, founderThe London-focused house builder called the bottom of the market last year when he bought a chunk of land and vowed to double profits in five years. He was recently voted by his peers as the most successful developer in the country. His street-fighter instincts will keep him on top.

Zaha HadidArchitectFresh from designing the Aquatics Centre for the Olympics, the world's leading contemporary female architect won this year's Stirling Prize for the Evelyn Grace Academy in Brixton - where she put the running track through the centre of the school buildings. Born in Baghdad, with a practice based in Clerkenwell, she is well-travelled, intense and dynamic.

Gerald RonsonHeron International, CEOLondon's fiercest developer has finished his Heron office tower on Bishopsgate. A hotel follows along with a tower full of flats at the Barbican, which is already two-thirds sold. His annual lunch is a legendary power-fest at which the property world listens to Ronson's savvy view of the market. Married to big Jewish charity donor Dame Gail.

Duke of WestminsterLandlord His Grace, whose family owns the vast Grosvenor Estates, is concentrating more on his 300 acres of Mayfair and Belgravia than on provincial shopping centres. The gregarious Duke is the most influential aristo in London property with £6 billion of assets. His right-hand man is Mark Townsend, Grosvenor's chief executive.

David AtkinsHammerson, CEO"Too young, too cautious" was the verdict when the chartered surveyor took charge at London's third-biggest developer two years ago after spending a decade at Hammerson. How things change. "Very mature, very wise" is the current verdict of the City on the savvy owner of Brent Cross.

Sir John RitblatColliers CRE, chairmanStill the cleverest financial brain in the business, the 75-year-old who built British Land into a huge business continues to wield influence at property services firm Colliers and through his son Jamie's business, Delancey. Patrician Sir John also chairs the trustees of the Wallace Collection museum.

Jamie Ritblat Delancey, CEOA series of big deals including the purchase of the Olympic village - in a joint venture with Qatari Diar - has seen this behind-the-scenes son of Sir John begin to eclipse his father. The portfolio of his property advisory firm Delancey also includes Royal Mint Court. Gave £50,000 to the Tories in April.

Ghanim bin Saad Al Saad Qatari Diar, managing directorChelsea Barracks developer Qatari Diar has emerged as our most influential and deep-pocketed property investor, its latest deal being the Olympic Village with Jamie Ritblat's Delancey. "We are seeking opportunities all over the world," says the Anglophile sovereign wealth boss, who studied for his Master's degree at the University of Kent.

Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al ThaniEmir of the State of QatarQatari money is flooding into London property thanks to the Sheik's affection for developments like Chelsea Barracks and the Shard. The man who set up Al Jazeera TV also snapped up Harrods last year.

Irvine SellarSellar Properties, founderVeteran developer who will leave his mark when The Shard tower he battled to build for 10 years is finished in 2013. "What other building has been built since the war that is as memorable and stands out?" he says. The former fashion mogul made his fortune on Carnaby Street in the Swinging Sixties.

Toby CourtauldGreat Portland Estates, CEOWent to school with David Cameron and then on to Cambridge with Nick Clegg. The scion of the Courtauld textile dynasty is well-connected. He is also betting a large part of the Great Portland shop on a slew of major developments, including an 800,000 sq ft block on Bishopsgate. Drives a red Mini and relaxes by playing the piano.

John BurnsDerwent London, founderThe developer's developer, he is the man most admired by his peers for pouring quarts of space into pint pot sites - and making the result very presentable. His portfolio ranges from the ultra-hip Tea Building in Shoreditch, magnet for creatives, to Portobello Dock near Kensal Green. His relaxation is "good restaurants".

Ken ShuttleworthMake Architects, founder The man behind the Gherkin is seemingly involved in half the new schemes in London, including the new Saatchi & Saatchi rebuild on Charlotte Street and the planned new UBS banking HQ at Broadgate. Born in Birmingham and self-effacing, the alumnus of Norman Foster's practice has certainly made a name for himself.

Mike SladeHelical Bar, CEOOnce lunched, never forgotten, he's a world-class yachtsman of gale-force gusto who chairs the very successful Tory party property lobby group which has been behind plans to reform the planning laws - just ask the National Trust. Owns raft of sites including White City and King Street, Hammersmith.

Jeremy HelsbySavills, CEOSharp, sardonic boss of this highly profitable business continues to show a pair of well-polished heels to rivals in the prime estate agency business. He joined Savills more than three decades ago and has worked across Europe and Asia, so knows how to schmooze foreign buyers in the capital.

Roger BrightCrown Estate, CEOFormer mandarin with an infectious giggle has transformed Regent Street in his 10 years running this government property business which has a capital value of £7.3 billion. Bright's role to maximise revenues for the Treasury is more important than ever in austere times.

Sir Stuart LiptonChelsfield, co-founderThe veteran visionary behind the original development of Broadgate, he has been a vehement critic of UBS's plans for a radical revamp. The former Stanhope boss is a champion of localism and his firm's portfolio includes Camden Market and the Knightsbridge estate. Son Elliott, who runs First Base, has the property gene too.

David ReubenSimon ReubenReuben Brothers, co-founders The media-shy but beneficent Iraqi-born brothers have build up a huge UK property empire, including now the former home of the In and Out Club on Piccadilly for which plans are eagerly awaited. They are also generous philanthropists through the Reuben Foundation.

Fawn JamesIndia James Soho Estates, heiresses There are the faintest of hints that the coltish granddaughters of the late Paul Raymond will allow the largely untouched Soho estate to be partially redeveloped. The Sunday Times Rich List estimates the half-sisters' wealth at £302 million. Failed ex-Tory mayoral candidate Steve Norris chairs the company.

Nick ThomlinsonKnight Frank, Senior PartnerThe posh boss of still the poshest agents is self-deprecatory and amusing but don't be fooled - the senior partner has bite as well as bonhomie. His firm reckons 60 per cent of new-build property in central London is being snapped up by Asian buyers.

Liz PeaceBritish property federation, CEOTireless and highly articulate spokeswoman for developers who rely on her to front their cause for the Lib-Con coalition's loosened planning laws. Half mother-hen, half headmistress, great at both.

Nick Candy Christian CandyCandy & Candy, founders The developing duo behind One Hyde Park. Nick is the more assertive brother - still active on the social circuit, but less so in property as others muscle into the hyper-luxury flat market he helped create. Christian is the younger, quieter sibling who fronted the fight with Prince Charles on Chelsea Barracks and won the brothers a settlement worth millions.

Peter Wynne ReesCity of London, chief plannerTwenty-five years shaping the City of London and still no signs of slowing down from the Welshman, who developers simply have to show plans to first. "We need development and restoration side by side," says Wynne Rees, who is known for his flamboyant dress sense.

Dame JudithMayhew JonasNew West End Company, chairman Formidable and feisty New Zealander who advances the cause of Oxford and Regent Street traders, but who has yet to get the buses to retreat from the former. The former top City lawyer and ex-Provost of King's, Cambridge says: "Wouldn't it be nice if the West End was traffic-free every Sunday? Why not? It works in New York."

Lord RogersArchitectBrilliant modernist, whose landmarks include the Pompidou Centre, the Lloyd's Building and Heathrow Terminal 4, is a design adviser to the Mayor of London. Has got the green light for a "Skywalk" roofwalk over one of his old designs, the O2 at Greenwich, aka the Dome.

Lord FosterArchitectThe architect behind the Gherkin, the Millennium Bridge and other grand projects is well into his seventies but is staying busy - current projects include building an entire city in the Abu Dhabi desert. Spends less time in London after quitting the House of Lords to spend more time abroad for tax reasons, but his Foster & Partners practice continues.

Mark PrestonGrosvenor, CEOHe joined the Duke of Westminster's property company fresh out of university and has stayed loyal, rising to run the biggest estate in London in 2008. Big focus is on expansion in Asia, particularly China, and there's a fund-management arm too.

Ian HawksworthCapital & Counties, CEOOwner of Covent Garden and shaper of Earl's Court who has plans that will see the exhibition centre come down to be replaced by thousands of homes and new offices. A trained chartered surveyor, he spent 14 years working in Asia before coming back to spruce up the capital.

Paul FinchDesign Council, deputy chairmanIs your development a wonder or a blunder? Finch is the man that gets to see the plans in his powerful role at the Design Council, which took over the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment earlier this year. A thumbs-down from one-time journalist Finch means a developer can expect trouble with the planners.

Alasdair Nicholls Native Land, CEO"There is only one developer of big residential schemes I would lend to - and that's Native Land," says one banker, burned by others. Nicholls's big scheme is NEO Bankside, a major residential project behind Tate Modern. The former Taylor Woodrow executive founded NL in 2003.

Mike HusseyAlmacantar, CEOThe former Land Securities director is now helping the Marylebone Cricket Club make up their mind on what to do with Lord's. But his landmark scheme is to transform CentrePoint into flats. An expert on the London market who previously ran Land Securities' portfolio in the capital.

Trevor AbrahamsohnGlentree Estates, owner Supreme residential property fixer for the super-prime market. Talk, sorry, listen, to this full-on dealmaker whose secret is to get the buyer in face-to-face talks with the sellers of high-end homes in north London.

Gary HershamBeauchamp EstatesA 30-year veteran of the West End residential market who connects very rich buyers and sellers. Boasts that he acted on the £35 million sale of Palladio, a giant Hampstead mansion said to be most expensive new build in Britain.

Stephen GreenhalghHammersmith & Fulham council leaderBurly Tory enthusiast for Earl's Court development, who is pushing for the rebuilding of large parts of the borough around White City as well. Greenhalgh is credited with influencing national government policy on property.

Aubrey AdamsRoyal Bank of Scotland, head of property restructuring unitSmooth, tanned eminence grise of property scene who helped to build up Savills into the force it is today, quitting with perfect timing at the start of the credit crunch. Now has just made a surprise return at RBS to detoxify the mess and repossessions that were left behind after ex-boss Sir Fred Goodwin's unhappy reign.

Luca del BonoDeveloperCharming Anglo-Italian 38-year-old who has just got hold of the former site of the Devonshire Club at 50 St James's. His group of Russian investors is betting on him to develop it as a hotel and club - after the previous incumbent, a casino, closed down.